Being Mini
by Elf on Team Leo
Summary: Smallkit of RiverClan is, predictably, small. To add to embarrassment, her front right paw is half as big as her others, making her off-balance and slow. Will she take the easy route and become a Medicine Cat, or will she face the challenge and become a Warrior? The story of her trials and tribulations. This is my first story, so please review! Rated T, just in case.
1. Prologue and A Different Kit

**RiverClan**

**Logstar-**Leader- Tom- brown mottled tabby/hazel eyes

**Grassfur**-Deputy- She-Cat- black smoke/green eyes

**Fruitclaw**-Medicine Cat- Tom- black and white/hazel eyes

**Whitepaw**-Med. Cat Apprentice- She-Cat- white/blue eyes

**Wavetail**-Warrior- Tom- dark silver tabby/blue eyes

**Redear**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/yellow eyes

**Nightfog**-Warrior- She-Cat- black/yellow eyes

**Shiverpelt**-Warrior- She-Cat- light silver tabby/hazel eyes

**Treeheart**-Warrior- Tom- dark brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Cloudsplash**-Warrior- She-Cat- grey/green eyes

**Mousetooth**-Warrior- Tom- brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Brightflame**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/yellow eyes

**Whispermist**-Queen- She-Cat- blue tabby/green eyes

**Lilypond**-Queen- She-Cat- dark blue/hazel eyes

**Fogpaw**-Apprentice(Treeheart)- Tom- black/green eyes

**Moonpaw**-Apprentice(Cloudsplash)- She-Cat- blue tabby/blue eyes

**Frogpaw**-Apprentice(Mousetooth)- Tom- brown tabby/hazel eyes

**Splashstream**-Elder- She-Cat- blue/yellow eyes

**Bristlefur**-Elder- Tom- orange tabby/hazel eyes

Prologue

Whispermist was having kits! The entirety of RiverClan was excited for the special occasion. These were the first kits to be born in moons. The nursery was empty except for Whispermist and a recently-pregnant queen. Even the Apprentice's Den was emptying out. The tough medicine cat, Fruitclaw, kept the Clan out of the nursery as he helped Whispermist. His apprentice Whitepaw was helpfully standing with herbs in her mouth, ready to go.

Whispermist's mate, Redear, bounded in, exhausted. "I was fishing when Wavetail called me, now I'm here."

Fruitclaw just nodded, not turning around. "Put down those herbs and fetch some water, Whitepaw."  
Whitepaw obediently ran out to the stream with a mossball and brought it back sopping wet.

Fruitclaw pressed the mossball to her mouth, squeezed it, then put a thick stick into her mouth. "Don't be afraid to bite down on it."

Whispermist nodded, breathing heavily. "Get ready," Fruitclaw warned. Soon, Whispermist was biting down on the stick and wailing. A kit slid into the large nursery nest. She was a beautiful blue tabby like her mother, with the same green eyes. Whispermist gasped at her beauty, even as wet and frail as she was. The victory was short-lived, however. Another kit came, a handsome orange tabby tom like his father, with his mother's green eyes.

"There's another," Fruitclaw said, holding his paw to Whispermist's stomach. "It's small, though." Whispermist was soon again biting the stick. She saw Fruitclaw looking concerned, but he couldn't do anything.

Fruitclaw sucked in a breath. "Whispermist," he said softly. Uh-oh. Fruitclaw never said things softly. "What?" Whispermist asked, scared. "The kit has a really small right front paw, and she's one of the smallest kits I've ever seen."

"Can't you do anything about it?" Whispermist gasped.

Fruitclaw just shook his head. "Shame," he said mostly to himself.

Chapter 1-The Different Kit

"Can't catch me!" Glintkit squeaked. He raced to the stream.

"Can too!" Rainkit squealed back, chasing him as fast as she could.

Smallkit sighed and shook her front right paw. It had been nearly useless since birth. Her right paw was half the size of her left. It was very difficult to walk correctly.

Whitepaw padded over. "Hey, Smallkit. You feeling okay?"

Smallkit just shrugged. "Sometimes I wish I'd never been born."

"Don't say that. Hey, you can still fish, you only need one paw. And soon you'll learn to fight with just one paw. Our Clan needs every cat it can get. If you want, you could help me sort herbs while your littermates are playing."

Smallkit nodded. "Sure."

Whitepaw helped lead her with her tail.

"Okay," Whitepaw said as they entered the den. "This herb is the easiest to remember: poppy seeds. They help calm the patient, and help them sleep." She rolled some around in her paw. "They go over here." She put them in a small crevice in a log.

"Smallkit!" Whispermist called in her beautiful voice.

"I have to go," Smallkit said, flicking her ears. "I'll come back tomorrow."

Whitepaw smiled and walked Smallkit over to her mother.

"Training to be a medicine cat?" Whispermist joked.

Smallkit smiled sadly. "I can't really play, so..."

Whispermist shooed Whitepaw away and walked her kits to their father. "Hello Redear," she purred. The three kits all pounced on him. Glintkit, easily the biggest, jumped up on his back. Rainkit went for his face as Smallkit softly bit his tail.

Redear let out a fake moan of pain and fell over. "You've beaten me!" He yowled. Glintkit jumped up and down on his father's back. Smallkit smiled but then lowered to the ground in fear as a huge cat landed right next to her. Rainkit had a similar look on her face, but Glintkit was all admiration.

"Hello, newest members of RiverClan," Logstar purred with satisfaction. He looked at Glintkit and nodded approvingly, looked at Rainkit, nodding again, then looked at Smallkit, sighing. "I'm guessing you'll be a medicine cat."

Smallkit immediately disliked Logstar. "No," she said defiantly. "I'm going to learn how to fight with one paw."

Logstar smiled, disbelief shining in his eyes. "Of course."


	2. Alone

Chapter 2-Alone

Smallkit yawned, bored. She was dozing in the nursery, still next to her mother, even though she was almost 6 moons old. Glintkit and Rainkit were much bigger than her now, and had their own nest.

Smallkit got up and padded to the medicine den. She had learned all of the medicines and where to put them by now. "Hello, Whitefeather. Any herbs you need sorted?"

"Nah, I'm good, Smallkit. Fruitclaw just arranged them this morning, then he went out to find some yarrow."

"Okay. Are you sure you don't need anything?"

"Nope. Although, are you planning to be a medicine apprentice? You'd be perfect for it, and Fruitclaw is getting old..."

"Whitefeather, you know me well enough. I want to be a _Warrior. _I want to fight and hunt and protect my Clan. I couldn't stand being a Medicine Cat, being cooped up, not being able to fight, not being able to mate... It'd be torture."

Whitefeather shrugged. "Logstar won't be pleased. He wants more fighters, granted, but not... in your condition."

Smallkit grimaced. "I've made my decision. It's time for Logstar to realize he doesn't run my life."

"I understand," Whitefeather said softly.

"Smallkit? It's time to stop pretending. You're almost an apprentice now," Logstar said, padding in with his head held high.

Smallkit snorted. "I'm stronger than you'll ever know, Logstar. You'll just never see me for who I really am." And with that, Smallkit pushed past a stunned Logstar into the clearing. She stopped by the fresh-kill pile and grabbed a squirrel, which she ate on a small tree stump.

A pile of kits tumbled out of the nursery. It was Rainkit, and Mosskit and Hawkkit, the two new kits in the nursery. They were all pouncing on each other. Rainkit yowled, "Come on, Smallkit! Play with us!"

She was thinking about joining when Lilypond came out of the nursery. "Mosskit! Hawkkit!" she scolded. "I told you not to leave the nest! Get back in here!" Mosskit and Hawkkit followed their mother into the nursery, heads down.

Smallkit looked around the camp and was a bit surprised to see Frogpaw staring dreamily at Rainkit. Rainkit's beauty was unparallelled, and it would probably get her into trouble someday. Even as a kit she had toms mooning over her. Smallkit was sure she'd never see that kind of adoration from a tom.

The new warrior Moonheart padded by. She was beautiful, too. Smallkit pawed the ground, not paying attention.

Glintkit went up to her, concerned. "What's wrong, sis?" he asked. "Is Rainkit being mean to you?"

"No. I just feel so... Alone."


	3. Looking Up

_**Thanks for the follow and reviews!**_

_****_Chapter 3-Looking Up

"Glintkit, Smallkit, and Rainkit, please step forward," Logstar called. The entire Clan watched the three kits as they clambered their way to the leader.

"You are all now six moons old, and have met all the requirements for becoming apprentices. Will you accept to serve your clan?

"I accept," the kits said in unison.

"Very well. From now, until the day you receive your warrior names, you shall be called Glintpaw, Smallpaw, and Rainpaw. Now Nightfog, Brightflame, and Grassfur, step forward please."

"Nightfog, do you accept to mentor Rainpaw in the ways of the Clan?"

"I accept."

"Brightflame, do you accept to mentor Glintpaw in the ways of the Clan?"

"I accept."

"Grassfur, do you accept to mentor Smallpaw in the ways of the Clan?"

"I accept."

"RiverClan, I present to you, three new apprentices!"

Rainpaw ran to Nightfog, Glintpaw bounced to Brightflame, and Smallpaw padded to Grassfur.

"I am honored to have the deputy be my mentor," Smallpaw said humbly. Grassfur put her tail comfortingly around Smallpaw's shoulder. "Logstar wanted to mentor you, but he is completely wrong for you, I can tell. I talked him out of it, so now you have me. I used to be a small apprentice as well. I know specialized fighting and hunting techniques Logstar has never even heard of."

"Thanks! I don't know what I'd do if Logstar were my mentor."

"Just don't worry. Sometimes smaller is better in battle situations."

Smallpaw smiled. Things were looking up for her. "Can we go hunting now?"

"Sure. Just let me ask the other mentors if they want to, as well."

"When you see prey, make sure you're downwind from it before you start to stalk it. You don't want it to smell you and run away," Brightflame explained.

"Exactly," Nightfog agreed. "And when you crouch, make sure you are low to the ground, but not able to touch the leaves. Also, make sure your tail is down. That's what most apprentices forget."

Greenfur continued. "Once you have a satisfactory crouch, start quickly creeping forward. When you feel you're close enough, pounce! Now you try to make a good crouch."

The mentors scrutinized their apprentices for details. "Closer to the ground, Glintpaw."

"Make sure your tail doesn't touch the ground, Rainpaw."

"Very good, Smallpaw! And on the first try, too!"

Her siblings stared at her jealously. While they had been chasing each other around the camp, she had stayed in the medicine den and practiced crouches with Whitefeather. It wasn't her fault her siblings had never thought of that. Now, when they got to battle training, she was sure her siblings would outdo her.

When they got back to camp, Grassfur pulled her aside. "Tomorrow, we'll begin battle training. You won't be doing that with your siblings for a while, however. I'm going to show you all of the special moves. Don't show these to your littermates, and don't let them show you theirs. That would just make everything confusing. Later on, you can fight your siblings and show them what a small cat can do. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Now go get some food and rest to be ready for tomorrow."

Smallpaw smiled and ran over to the fresh-kill pile. Things were definitely looking up.


	4. Training

Chapter 4-Training

"Alright, let's practice the first move again," Grassfur said.

Smallpaw obliged, running through Grassfur's front legs and pawing her stomach. When Grassfur tried to squish her, she dodged out from under and jumped on her back. Then she pawed Grassfur's ear and bit down on her scruff. Grassfur shook her head from side to side to dislodge Smallpaw, and it worked.

"Again," Grassfur demanded, looking disappointed.

Smallpaw flexed her shoulders and went in. She did perfectly until she leaped late and fell to the ground. Grassfur whipped around and put a paw on her neck, saying, "Dead."

Smallpaw sighed and got into place again, tensing her muscles. But Grassfur stopped her, saying, "Let's do something else. I have an idea."

First, she caught a vole. Then, she padded around the entire forest, apparently looking for something. She suddenly stopped and put the vole on a tree branch above Smallpaw's head.

"Now leap and try to grab the vole. This is an exercise for your back legs."

To her surprise, Smallpaw didn't touch the vole. She barely came close.

After a day of jumping, Smallpaw could barely walk back to camp. "You'll get better," Grassfur promised.

Smallpaw just snorted and limped to her den.

*passage of time*

"Today is what you've all been waiting for," Nightfog joked. "The hunting competition! Gather as much fresh-kill as you can. Cat with the most fresh-kill gets to sleep in tomorrow, second-most gets to do morning patrol, and third gets to feed the elders and check them for ticks. Any questions? No? Okay... Go!"

Rainpaw, a very good hunter, raced toward Sunningrocks. Glintpaw, a not-so-good hunter, ran to the gorge, while Smallpaw seeked out the stream.

When she got there, Smallpaw sat down and fell into a pattern. Lean back, see fish, swipe fish, kill fish. Over and over until a pile was forming. She didn't realize how big it was until she decide she was too tired to fish any more. She knew she wouldn't be able to carry all of them.

"Need help?" Grassfur stalked out of the shadows. "Good fishing, by the way."

When they got back, they were the last ones there. Smallpaw was weighed down by fish, Grassfur's mouth jam-packed. Rainpaw ran up to her and congratulated her, eying all the prey with admiration. "You're probably the best fisher in the Clan!"

"I wouldn't say that," Grassfur smiled. "Redear is the best, but at least we know where she gets it from!"

*passage of time*

Smallpaw padded out of her den, yawning, as Logstar approached her. She gave an exasperated hiss. "What do you want?"

"That's no way to speak to your leader."

"I'll start speaking to you like a leader when you start acting like one." Smallpaw then headed for the fresh-kill pile.

Logstar blocked her path with a paw. "Listen, Smallpaw. I'm sorry."

"I'm glad you're apologizing, but it's too late. I'm going to be a warrior, and Grassfur is going to be my mentor."

"I know now, and I'm not trying to stop you. I never realized that someone so small could be so important. All my life, I believed that size was power. You changed me, Smallpaw."

Granted, Smallpaw was surprised. But she wasn't going to show that. "Well, good for you," she said sarcastically. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to eat." She gave another effort at getting food.

"Stop treating this as a joke!" Logstar yelled, actually angry now. "We've both matured. We've both grown. I'm apologizing and you take it lightly. You're not a kit, so stop acting like one! If you ever expect to become a warrior, you need more respect for your elders, no matter how oblivious they may be!"

Smallpaw looked at Logstar curiously. He had matured. "Alright, I'll make you a deal. I'll accept your apology and treat you with respect if you treat me with respect from now on."

"Deal."


	5. Sunningrocks

_**Sorry about the last few boring chapters, it gets more exciting here!**_

Chapter 5-Sunningrocks

"What do you mean, she's not allowed to mentor me because she's having kits? Why is that a plausible reason?"

"She won't be in a well enough condition, and she will have to spend most of her time in the camp, just in case," Whitefeather explained to Smallpaw.

"But that's not fair!"

"Nothing's fair." And with that, Whitefeather padded back to the medicine den.

"Who's going to be my mentor now?"Smallpaw asked Logstar.

Logstar tentatively said, "I will be. And before you say anything-" Smallpaw had opened her mouth-"I'll be learning all of the moves from Grassfur before teaching them to you and demonstrating them with you. Alright? Plus, you'll get more experience fighting larger cats."

Smallpaw sighed, disbelieving, but accepted anyway. You can't argue with the Clan leader. "Alright. Are we going to do anything right now?"

"The morning hunting patrol is going out in a little bit. We can join them, if you want."

"Are they going by the river?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go."

"You know, you really need to learn how to hunt land animals."

"That's what the other hunters are for."

Logstar sighed, unable to make her see sense. "Anyway, let's go."

Smallpaw nodded, glad he had ended the conversation.

* * *

"I'll stay behind to catch a few more fish," Smallpaw told the others on the patrol.

Redear, Logstar, Cloudsplash, and Wavetail all nodded and went back to camp with their unlucky prey, while Smallpaw took the long way, going past the stepping stones. She quickly glanced at the Sunningrocks, and good thing she did.

"Hey!" she yowled. "You're not supposed to be up there!"

Her loud words were directed at Fogcloud, Frogleap, Shiverpelt, and Glintpaw.

"Oh, please," Fogcloud laughed. "ThunderClan cats seeing us trespassing is just as probable as Rainpaw seeing Frogleap staring at her."

"Hey!" protested Frogleap, embarrassed.

"Are you making fun of my sister?" Smallpaw laughed, slowly swimming across the river.

"Maybe," Shiverpelt said. "But ThunderClan cats are much dumber than your sister."

"Yeah," Fogcloud agreed. "ThunderClan cats are blind as Twolegs!"

"Oh, are we?" A strange voice said.

"If RiverClan cats are so superior to us, why didn't you see us till now?"

All of the RiverClan cats tensed and hissed. Smallpaw, conveniently unseen, turned around and quickly but sneakily ran to camp. Whitefeather's words had proved true: Being small was helpful in these situations of spying.

"Logstar! Logstar!" Smallpaw yowled. Logstar quickly appeared. "What?" "There are some young warriors down on the Sunningrocks, and they got discovered by a patrol. You have to go and intervene! Please! Fast!"

Logstar nodded. "All warriors who were with me on the hunting patrol, let's go!" With that, he leaped out of the entrance and ran to Sunningrocks with the other warriors.

When they got there, five ThunderClan warriors were slowly making their way up the rocks, stranding the foolish RiverClan ones at the top.

"Don't announce yourself!" Smallpaw hissed to Logstar. "Secrecy is key. If you announce yourself, they know you can't do much about it if they attack, so they'll race up there and rip them apart. But if we sneak across, they will keep going slow and taunting."

Logstar nodded and flicked his tail to the other cats. They silently waded across, almost their entire bodies underwater. Once they were safely out of the water, and within two fox-lengths of the ThunderClan cats, Logstar yowled, "Leave them alone!"

"Fox-dung!" a cat cursed.

Another ThunderClanner, prouder, said, "Get your filth off our rocks before we get it off for you."

Logstar flicked his tail to the RiverClanners, ordering them to get down. They all were safely down, except for Fogcloud. One clawed him, just for good measure, which was a bad idea. Fogcloud turned around and hissed in the brown tabby's face, who scratched him again. With a screech, Fogcloud leaped on the cat. The other ThunderClan cats joined in, and the RiverClanners jumped in to protect their fellow warrior.

Smallpaw leaped in, landing on a medium-sized black she-cat. "I didn't know they let kits fight in RiverClan! Come on, do I need to help you get back to mommy's milk?" she teased. Smallpaw ignored her, ran through her forelegs, and did the rest of the attack flawlessly, until the very end. The black cat flicked her neck, throwing Smallpaw to the ground.

Smallpaw tried to get to her paws, but the black cat put a paw on her chest, holding her down. "Listen, fluffball. This time, I'll let you off, kit. But next time..." She dramatically stared at her long claws. Smallpaw squirmed out and ran back to camp.


	6. More Training

**_I'm going to re-post the Clan list in case you've forgotten._**

**RiverClan**

**Logstar-**Leader- Tom- brown mottled tabby/hazel eyes

**Grassfur**-Deputy/Queen- She-Cat- black smoke/green eyes

**Fruitclaw**-Medicine Cat- Tom- black and white/hazel eyes

**Whitefeather**-Med. Cat Apprentice- She-Cat- white/blue eyes

**Wavetail**-Warrior- Tom- dark silver tabby/blue eyes

**Redear**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/yellow eyes

**Nightfog**-Warrior- She-Cat- black/yellow eyes

**Shiverpelt**-Warrior- She-Cat- light silver tabby/hazel eyes

**Treeheart**-Warrior- Tom- dark brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Cloudsplash**-Warrior- She-Cat- grey/green eyes

**Mousetooth**-Warrior- Tom- brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Brightflame**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/yellow eyes

**Whispermist**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue tabby/green eyes

**Lilypond**-Warrior- She-Cat- dark blue/hazel eyes

**Fogcloud**-Warrior- Tom- black/green eyes

**Moonheart**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue tabby/blue eyes

**Frogleap**-Warrior- Tom- brown tabby/hazel eyes

**Glintpaw**-Apprentice(Brightflame)- Tom- orange tabby/green eyes

**Rainpaw**-Apprentice(Nightfog)- She-Cat- blue tabby/green eyes

**Smallpaw**-Apprentice(Grassfur)- She-Cat- blue/yellow eyes

**Hawkpaw**-Apprentice(Wavetail)- Tom- brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Mosspaw**-Apprentice(Moonheart)- She-Cat- blue/hazel eyes

**Splashstream**-Elder- She-Cat- blue/yellow eyes

**Bristlefur**-Elder- Tom- orange tabby/hazel eyes

Chapter 6-More Training

"Fogcloud, Frogleap, Shiverpelt, and Glintpaw, come to my den!" Logstar hissed.

It was after the battle, which RiverClan won, and Logstar wasn't happy. Grassfur stepped out of the nursery and padded to Smallpaw. "What happened?" she asked worriedly.

"The cats who are now in Logstar's den were on Sunningrocks. I called some reinforcements, and we almost got away without a fight. But a ThunderClan warrior provoked Fogcloud, and a battle started."

"What did you do?"

"I attacked a black she-cat, but she shook me off before I could get a grip."

"Darkpelt," Grassfur breathed. "She's a pain."

"She called me a kit."

"Sounds like her. So, I guess you still need to work on that move, huh."

Smallpaw nodded, sad. "I can't believe I messed up that badly."

"Don't worry about it," Grassfur comforted. "In an apprentice's first battle, they rarely beat a cat unless said cat is an apprentice as well."

"What happed in your first battle?" Smallpaw smiled.

"I got hit in the head by a cat who wasn't even fighting me."

Smallpaw snorted. She definitely didn't feel so bad now.

* * *

Smallpaw flexed her muscles, smiling. She had practiced this move all night.  
Logstar sheathed and unsheathed his claws, ready to go. Smallpaw took her move and performed it amazingly, even at the end. Logstar couldn't shake her no matter how hard he tried.

"Great job! Ready to do the defense moves?"

Smallpaw pawed the ground in response. Of course she was ready. Logstar swung a paw at her, and she ducked. He pounced on her, as he would with prey, and she slipped forward, under his stomach, and pawed him. He tried to pick her up with his teeth, and she pawed his nose. "Ready for the last one?" he whispered. Smallpaw nodded, then Logstar dove towards her. She leaped over his back, then pawed his leg and bit his tail.

"Perfect! Logstar praised. "Let's practice your hunting now."

Smallpaw groaned. "Why do I have to hunt?"

"Someday it might be very beneficial. You never know. But what I do know is that hunting is the best skill a cat can have. You can run away from a fight. You can't run from starvation."

"Fine. Let's get it over with."

Smallpaw scouted around, searching for some prey. The fall winds whipped at her fur as she strained to find some scents. Finally, after much searching, walking, and smelling, she found a robin. She moved downwind, dropped into a crouch, and took quick, light steps forward. She was so close, so close, until her paw slipped in mud and she fell. The robin fluttered away in a panic.

"Fox dung!" Smallpaw cursed.

Logstar padded over. "It wasn't your fault, it was just a little mud."

"That's why I don't like hunting! Something always goes wrong!"

"But you can do it over and over again. You can't do that with fighting."

"I guess you're right. But I still hate hunting."

"Come on, let's get back to camp. Your crouch and techniques are really good. It was just the mud that messed you up."

* * *

"Hey Hawkpaw, want to practice fighting with me?" Rainpaw asked the new apprentice. "Sure," Hawkpaw shrugged. Smallpaw could tell Hawkpaw didn't like Rainpaw as much as the other toms did. She respected him for that.

"Can I come, too?" Mosspaw asked. "Of course," said Rainpaw, slightly distracted. She glanced at Frogleap before she left to go practice.

Smallpaw padded to Frogleap, who was eating. "Hey Smallpaw, what's up?"

"Are you and Rainpaw mating?"

"No..." He said, suspicious. Then he perked up, asking, "Why, does she like me?"

"I think so, but I'm not sure."

"Yes!" Frogleap bounded to his brother, Fogcloud. Smallpaw rolled her eyes and promised herself she'd never get wrapped up like that.

* * *

"Alright, this is what you were all _really_ waiting for. You will now be fighting each other, as well as your mentors or siblings' mentors. Glintpaw and Smallpaw will battle first, since the size difference will make for an interesting fight," Logstar explained. "Ready? Go!"

Glintpaw took the first move. He pounced on Smallpaw, but she darted underneath him and bit his tail. Glintpaw whipped around and tried to strike her, but it was very clumsy and he missed. Smallpaw tried to leap on top of him, but he batted her down, trapping her under his paw. She pawed his leg until he let go, then did her signature move: through the legs, under the belly, on the back. She bit down hard as he tried to shake her. He collapsed under her weight, though it wasn't much, and rolled over. She held her breath as he rolled on top of her and kept pawing his back.

"Alright!" Brightflame stopped it. I believe Smallpaw won. Good try, Glintpaw. Now Rainpaw, let's see you try Glintpaw."

They exchanged a number of strikes and blows, but eventually ended with Glintpaw head-butting his sister into a tree.

"Good job, Glintpaw! Now Rainpaw, once you're okay, you can fight Smallpaw."

They had to wait a bit for Rainpaw to recover, but soon they were in fighting position. Rainpaw had seen Smallpaw's earlier move, so she closed her front legs. Smallpaw smiled, as Grassfur had addressed this problem with her. Smallpaw leaped all the way over Rainpaw's head, landing behind her, and twisting to bite her tail and claw her rear. Rainpaw hissed with pain and swung at Smallpaw, who was knocked over, but quickly recovered.

Smallpaw and Rainpaw stared at each other, tensing their muscles. Rainpaw suddenly darted forward, pawed Smallpaw's side, and ended up behind her. Smallpaw turned around, and they were stuck in the same situation as before. Smallpaw took a leap, but Rainpaw expected her to land behind her, so she turned around. But Smallpaw was headed for her back, and made it there, pushing her sister's head so far forward that she fell over.

"Smallpaw wins!" Logstar said proudly.

"Nice moves," Glintpaw admired.

"I think I need to go to the medicine den," was all Rainpaw said.

* * *

_**Can you guys post some more reviews? I'd love to hear from you. Suggestions, comments, like it, don't like it? Thanks guys!**_


	7. The Stranger

Chapter 7-The Stranger

The whole Clan cheered on Grassfur. She was the only one left in the nursery, and was having her kits. "Two kits!" Fruitclaw called out. "One is black with green eyes, one a silver tabby with green eyes, both She-kits.

"Named Sprucekit and Silverkit," Whitefeather added.

Smallpaw weaved her way through the cats and squeezed into the nursery. "Grassfur!" she exclaimed.

"You're not supposed to be in here," Fruitclaw warned, but he didn't do anything about it. "How are the kits?" Smallpaw wondered.

Grassfur smiled. "They're fine. Want to see?" Smallpaw padded over to the nest. "They're beautiful," she commented. "These kits are going to be great warriors someday."

Grassfur nodded. Wavetail, the father, licked his daughters lovingly. Smallpaw backed out of the nursery and left the camp to go hunting.

She was almost upon her prey when another cat burst out of the bushes and caught the mouse. Distraught with anger, Smallpaw leaped on the newcomer, growling. "My prey!"

The cat was too shocked to fight, so Smallpaw ended the brawl with her paw on his neck. "Come with me, and don't try to escape. I'm not going to hurt you." She picked up the mouse and led him to camp with her tail. He didn't try to fight.

Logstar was the first one to notice them, and he ran to Smallpaw. "Who is this?"

"A stranger that I found while I was hunting."

Logstar turned to the newcomer, a dark brown tabby tom. "What's your name?"

"I don't have one. No one ever bothers to talk to me."

"What were you doing on our land?"

By now, the entire Clan was staring at them. "I needed food. I thought I smelled a marking, but I spotted a mouse and..." his stomach growled. "I couldn't resist."

Logstar took the mouse from Smallpaw, who protested, and gave it to the cat. "Eat it, you need it more than anyone here. You're welcome to stay for a few days, if only to eat and rest somewhere safe. Smallpaw can show you around."

As Smallpaw groaned, the cat ate the mouse in a few quick bites. "Alright," Smallpaw said to the cat. "I'm going to get tired of saying "you", so I'm going to call you Pinepaw. Okay? So some rules. Don't leave the boundaries unless you tell Logstar you're leaving. Don't eat all the fresh-kill if you're not going to hunt. Don't bother me while I'm sleeping. Clear?"

"Clear..."

"You don't talk much. I like that." She led him to the Apprentice's Den. "This is where you'll be sleeping. That over there is the Warrior's Den. You'll probably never see the inside of it. There's the nursery, where Grassfur and her kits are. There's the Elder's Den, and I wouldn't advise you to go in there, Bristlefur is really cranky. And that's Logstar's den, another one you'll probably never go into. Got them all?"

"No."

"Okay. Follow me." Smallpaw led Pinepaw out of camp, to the river. "This is my favorite hunting spot. I can catch huge piles of fish at a time. There are the stepping-stones and Sunningrocks, which we never use because they're ThunderClan's." She stuck out her tongue, and for the first time, she saw Pinepaw smile, which made her smile as well. "Come on furball, let me show you the gorge."

Smallpaw showed Pinepaw around all of the RiverClan landmarks. When they got back to camp, a crowd of cats came up to him, asking questions and introducing themselves.

"How long are you staying?"

"I'm Fogcloud, Clan troublemaker."

"What's your name?"

"Where'd you come from?"

"HEY!" Smallpaw yowled. The crowd was silenced. "One at a time. Or not at all. He's clearly had a bad day, being captured and all. He needs some food. Disperse!" Smallpaw led him to the fresh-kill pile and gave him a plump starling. "I would ask for you to share, but you're literally starving, so I'll leave it to you." She took a vole and shot a smile at him.

As they ate, Pinepaw asked, "Why is your paw so small?" Smallpaw shrugged. "It was born like that. I was born small, too, that's why I'm like this."

"Like what? Small?" He scoffed. "It doesn't even matter how big you are. You can still fight. You can still hunt. What's the problem?"

Smallpaw shrugged again. "Everyone from the other Clans makes fun of me. They call me a kit."

"So what if you look like a kit? You don't act like a kit. Whenever they call you that, just show them how this kit can still whoop their butt." He smiled.

Smallpaw smiled. "You're right. Thanks, Pinepaw."

"Anytime."


	8. Warrior

Chapter 8-Warrior

"Are you all ready for your assessment?" Brightflame asked the three apprentices.

"Yes!" they all said, excited.

"Okay. First, hunt as much prey as you want. Then go fishing, then cross the river and come back. Easy, right? Go!"

Smallpaw slowly stalked off to hunt. She was going to catch something, she had promised herself. She easily caught the first thing she came across, a blackbird. _Logstar should be pleased by that catch_, she thought to herself. Soon after that, she caught a thin squirrel. Pleased, she padded to the river, easily crossed it, and came back. Then she spent her time catching as many fish as she wanted.

When it was almost too many fish for her to carry, she came back to cheers and congratulations. Logstar said, "Good job on the blackbird and squirrel. I'm really proud of you."

Whispermist and Redear came up to them. "Great job!" they cheered. "You fished almost as well as I do," Redear joked.

Pinepaw was the last to come up to her. "I heard you did a good job at whatever this is," he said.

"This was my warrior assessment. After this, I have nothing in my way to becoming a warrior!"

Pinepaw nodded in understanding. "Well, see you later. Maybe we could share a blackbird to celebrate?"

"That would be great." Smallpaw smiled as Pinepaw ran off.

Sprucekit and Silverkit were out of the nursery, staring at all the cats. Grassfur came out to watch them and make sure they didn't run away. "I heard you did a great job on your assessment," she said, smiling.

"I just can't wait to become a warrior!"

"I know how you feel. I felt the exact same way after my warrior assessment."

Smallpaw's stomach growled suddenly. "I'm hungry, so I'm going to go eat. Bye, Grassfur!"

She raced towards Pinepaw. "Alright, I'm ready to eat!"

Long story short, it was the best blackbird she had ever had, so laced with celebration and expectation as it was.

* * *

"Rainpaw, Glintpaw, and Smallpaw, step forward."

Smallpaw was beaming as her co-mentor called her name. "Brightflame, do you believe Glintpaw is ready to become a warrior and serve his Clan?"

"I do."

"Nightfog, do you believe Rainpaw is ready to become a warrior and serve her Clan?"

"I do."

"Grassfur, do you believe Smallpaw is ready to become a warrior and serve her Clan?"

"I do."

"Very well. From this day forward,you shall be known as Glintfur, Rainheart, and Smallfoot. RiverClan welcomes three new warriors!"

As the Clan cheered their names, the three padded to Logstar and licked his shoulder one by one. "May StarClan light your path," he said to each, with a wink to Smallfoot.

"I did it! I finally did it!" she exclaimed to Whispermist, who nuzzled her smallest daughter with pride. "Great job, beautiful."

Smallfoot glanced around, and saw Frogleap padding away with Rainheart. She thought of following them, but then realized that she might be doing that soon, and wouldn't want someone to spy on her.

Pinepaw tentatively padded up to her. "Good job! I have good news too."

"You're staying?"

He nodded, smiling shyly.

"Oh, Pinepaw!" She tackled him, causing some nearby cats to stare, but she didn't care. Cats stared at her all the time. She just didn't care anymore.

* * *

Smallfoot, Rainheart, and Glintfur were sitting in the middle of the camp, bored by their vigil.

Smallfoot looked up at the stars and whispered, "Lead me, please. When I don't know where to go, guide my paws-" at this she looked down at her paws-"to my destiny. Please, ancestors. I need guidance."

She heard something move. Definitely a cat. She jumped up, fur bristling, but no cats came through the entrance. Her siblings stared at her, confused. Pawsteps, again. Then a leaf crackled, right behind her. She twisted around to find...

Shadowkit and Silverkit stopped in their tracks. Smallfoot tried to give them a stern talking-to without using words, but gave up and carried them back to the nursery, to an alarmed Grassfur. "Thank you," she said gratefully.

Smallfoot went back to her sitting spot. She tried her hardest not to fall asleep, but the temptation...


	9. Hawkpaw?

_**Big thanks for all the reviews!**_

Chapter 9-Hawkpaw?

"Logstar, are you okay?" Smallfoot asked, worried about her leader.

"I'm fine," he said, while coughing again.

"No, you're not." Smallfoot attempted to push Logstar to the medicine den. "You have to see Fruitclaw! Face it, you're sick!"

"Chill out, Smallfoot," Fogcloud joked.

"This could be serious!" Gosh, he was annoying. Always joking around.

Conveniently, Whitefeather padded out of the medicine den just as Logstar had a tiny coughing fit. "Logstar," Whitefeather sighed. "Just because you're a leader doesn't mean you can't get sick." He ushered the leader into the den.

Smallfoot smiled. A job well done.

Hawkpaw came up to her. "Hey, do you want to go on the dusk patrol with me? I have a feeling it will be boring, and I'd love to have a friend to talk to." he smiled his handsome smile.

"Um, sure."

"I'll make sure to catch some prey for you," he promised.

"Thanks..." She felt awkward. Much too awkward.

"Well, see you! I have to go train."

Smallfoot stood there, trying to deduce Hawkpaw's meaning. They weren't that good of friends, anyway. Well, maybe that was it. Maybe he wanted to become a better friend. But the prey part? That was a little too friendly. Was he joking with her, a prank for his friends?

_You're thinking too much,_ her brain told her. She nodded to herself.

It was odd, being so free. She didn't have to train, or go hunting, every day, only when Logstar called her. She just didn't know what to do with all the free time.

Smallfoot spotted Pinepaw from across the camp and rushed over to him. "How are you doing?" she asked, just being friendly. And bored.

"Not too bad. I'm learning all this stuff so quickly, though."

"Don't worry, you'll get it. Maybe you should tell your mentor about how you feel."

"I can't do that," he said, quickly shaking his head. "Shiverpelt would probably get angry at me."

"That's what mentors are there for. To help you, silly."

"Pinepaw!" Shiverpelt's sharp voice rang out. "Let's go, battle training!"

Pinepaw gave a worried smile and ran off.

* * *

"Hawkpaw, seriously, what is this about? We're not that close of friends, anyway," Smallfoot asked him when they were out of hearing range of the other cats on the patrol.

"Alright, Smallfoot. You want me to tell you?"

"Yes."

"Well, here goes: I... think you are the prettiest cat I've ever seen."

Smallfoot thought for a bit, then softly snorted. "Prettiest cat you've ever seen? Are you sure you aren't confusing me with Rainheart?"

Hawkpaw looked at her, hurt. "Smallfoot. I'm serious."

_So that's what he was on about,_ Smallfoot thought to herself. She smiled without thinking about it. "Hawkpaw..."

"Yes?" he asked hopefully.

"I think you're handsome, smart, brave, and strong. But... you already have she-cats who like you."

"Forget them. You're braver and smarter than they'll ever be."

Smallfoot smiled again. "Thanks, Hawkpaw. But what do we do now that we've... erm... expressed our feelings?" Right after she said it, she knew it sounded ridiculous and stupid. But he answered seriously anyway.

"Just wait until I become a warrior. It can't be long, now. Then we'll have free time to talk, instead of me having to train all the time."

"Hey, you're lagging behind!" Cloudsplash called to them, and they sped up to the rest of the patrol.

* * *

"Hawkpaw, your warrior name will be Hawkflight. Mosspaw, your warrior name will be Mossclaw."

"Hawkflight! Mossclaw!" The Clan yowled together.

"Hawkflight!" Smallfoot yowled the loudest, smiling cheerfully.

But before Smallfoot could congratulate him, Rainheart ran up to him, pushing her away. "Oh, Hawkflight, great job! Now we can see each other more often, and maybe we can share tongues tomorrow..."

Smallfoot could tell that Hawkflight was uncomfortable around her sister. "Actually, Rainheart, I was thinking about going hunting with Smallfoot."

"Oh, please, Hawkflight," Rainheart said, not knowing that her sister was right behind her. "Smallfoot won't fulfill your expectations in a she-cat. I, however, can and will." She led Hawkflight away against his will.

"Rainheart!"

She turned around, surprised to see her small sister.

"Can't you see he doesn't want to go? Let him do his vigil and be in peace!"

"But I want to be with him!"

Unfortunately for Rainheart, Frogleap heard her at that exact moment. "So you don't want me, huh, Rainheart? Want to play with the heart of every tom in the Clan, instead of taking the one who wants you?" He stormed off into the forest.

"Wait, Frogleap!" She ran off after him.

Smallfoot slowly approached Hawkflight, she wasn't sure if he was too worked up or not. "Smallfoot! Thanks a ton for standing up to Rainheart. See what I said about you being brave? Anyway, do you want to go hunting with me tomorrow, like I said?"

"Of course! Just make sure you get enough sleep."

"Thanks again." He sat down in the middle of the camp and gave her a smile before she went to the den.


	10. Cough

Chapter 10-Cough

"So, are we really here to hunt, or did you just say that to get Rainheart out of your face, and plan to do something else with me?"

"Fishing, actually. But, you know, they're almost the same, right? Just that one is done with water... And fish..." Hawkflight joked.

Smallfoot lightly cuffed his ear. "All right, I get it, we're fishing! Any particular reason why?"

"Aren't you pushy. To answer your question, it's because I know you like fishing more than regularly hunting. Come on."

"Well, thanks. I'm glad you think about me." She leaned up to lick the larger warrior's ear.

They made it to the river. "I wonder if I can catch any fish," Hawkflight said plainly.

"Of course you can! Just set your mind to it!" Smallfoot easily caught a fish.

"You make it look so simple," Hawkflight moaned. His paw flashed into the water, but it came out empty. "This water's freezing," he commented.

"Yes, genius, it's leaf-bare. Everything's freezing. Now watch my moves very closely and copy them." She performed a simple fishing move.

Hawkflight practiced it over and over until it started raining. "Keep trying until you can catch a fish!" Smallfoot challenged him. On his third try, he caught a small silver fish.

Smallfoot smiled at him as he ran under shelter with his puny fish. "I have to ask, why didn't you fish much when you were an apprentice?"

"Wavetail knew I was bad at fishing, and he wasn't going to change that. He decided to focus on building up on my strengths instead of trying to fix my weaknesses. Kind of like how Logstar didn't hunt with you."

"That was completely different!" she yowled, harsher than she had meant to.

Hawkflight stepped back, a little hurt, but once he saw her face, he knew she hadn't meant it. "Speaking of Logstar, how is he doing? I heard he had whitecough."

"I don't know. Do you want to check on him?"

"Sure."

They headed into the medicine den. "Is Logstar here?" they asked Fruitclaw. He showed them into a separate room. "Don't get too close." He cast Logstar a slight sympathetic glance, which was fairly hard to get out of Fruitclaw.

Smallfoot threw off Fruitclaw's warnings and ran right up to Logstar. She wanted to say something, but nothing could pop into her mind. Her leader looked so sad, so broken, so... Old. "I'm sure it'll get better," she choked. She knew it was a lie, but it was worth it to see a tiny smile out of her former mentor.

Hawkflight spoke softly. "What life is this?" He knew he wasn't a good friend of the leader, but he hoped Logstar would confide in him. In Smallfoot, at least.

He hesitated. "This is my seventh life. I'm not quite as old as I look." He gave a wonderful brief smile.

But Smallfoot was worried. "Logstar, if you get greencough..."

"Shh! Don't give StarClan any ideas." Well, at least he could still joke around.

"Stop treating this as a joke!" She was repeating what Logstar had said moons ago, and he knew it. Logstar was silent for a few seconds. "Listen. if I get greencough, I get greencough. Life goes on. Face it, I won't be your only leader. We can die, too, no matter how much we try not to."

"Logstar!" Smallfoot embraced her leader, smelling the strong scent of catmint on his fur. "You can't die. Not like this."

"Sickness is a fighter's worst enemy," Hawkflight whispered, joining in the conversation. "You can't see it, you can't kill it like you can a cat. It makes the strongest warrior weaker than the smallest kit. Medicine is much more unpredictable than your own claws, such as another cat is more predictable than a preying illness."

Smallfoot didn't expect this monologue out of Hawkflight, she had to admit. Logstar looked like he was thinking the same thing.

"Well, Logstar," Smallfoot said after a long silence. "I guess we'll see you later. Please get better!" They left the medicine den.

* * *

Pinepaw came up to Smallfoot as she was eating. "I just came to tell you, Hawkflight is in the medicine den. He started coughing today."

Smallfoot tried to smile, but her face wouldn't let her. "Thanks, Pinepaw," she said simply, running to Hawkflight. But what was that she had seen in Pinepaw's eyes? Disappointment? Sadness? There was a lot of that in RiverClan these days. Thankfully, the sickness had stayed with Logstar until now.

"Hawkflight!" She said to him, more worried than she had ever been in her life. It was a terrible feeling, worry. Best friends with pain.

"I'm alright, Whitefeather says the cough's not bad. Not nearly as bad as Logstar's." He inclined his head to the leader, who was sitting in a corner with his head down. She padded over to him.

"Any better?"

"Not at all."

It was like being tortured, forced to see her two favorite cats in pain like this. Sickness really was the very worst enemy.

"Hawkflight, make sure someone tells me if something happens to you or Logstar."

"I think you've already got that taken care of. Everyone in the Clan knows that Logstar, Pinepaw, and I are easily your best friends. If word got out that I was getting worse, odds are you would hear about it before my parents did."

"You're right, Hawkflight. I guess I'm just being too protective because... I can't stand to see you like this. Either of you." She left the medicine den, and left camp, just to clear her head.

Pinepaw padded up to her. "Smallfoot, you really have terrible luck," he joked.

"You think I don't know that?" She pushed her friend aside.

He ran up and blocked her path. He was bigger than she thought he was. "Stop it, Smallfoot. You're better than this."

"Better than what?"

"Sulking around, being all pessimistic about the cough. Some things are bound to get better."

"Only some things."

"Look, Smallfoot. Life goes on. You can't stop it, you can't change it, all you can do is wave as it passes by."

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard, and I live with Rainheart."

"Fine. But trust me, soon you might be wanting me."

Smallfoot, not being able to find a reply, stormed back to camp. Pinepaw just stood there like his namesake, wiser than most his age would be, and unable to bear it.


	11. Last Sunrise

**RiverClan**

**Logstar-**Leader- Tom- brown mottled tabby/hazel eyes

**Grassfur**-Deputy/Queen- She-Cat- black smoke/green eyes

**Fruitclaw**-Medicine Cat- Tom- black and white/hazel eyes

**Whitefeather**-Med. Cat Apprentice- She-Cat- white/blue eyes

**Wavetail**-Warrior- Tom- dark silver tabby/blue eyes

**Redear**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/yellow eyes

**Shiverpelt**-Warrior- She-Cat- light silver tabby/hazel eyes

**Treeheart**-Warrior- Tom- dark brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Cloudsplash**-Warrior- She-Cat- grey/green eyes

**Mousetooth**-Warrior- Tom- brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Brightflame**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/yellow eyes

**Whispermist**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue tabby/green eyes

**Lilypond**-Warrior- She-Cat- dark blue/hazel eyes

**Fogcloud**-Warrior- Tom- black/green eyes

**Moonheart**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue tabby/blue eyes

**Frogleap**-Warrior- Tom- brown tabby/hazel eyes

**Glintfur**-Warrior- Tom- orange tabby/green eyes

**Rainheart**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue tabby/green eyes

**Smallfoot**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue/yellow eyes

**Hawkflight**-Warrior- Tom- brown tabby/yellow eyes

**Mossclaw**-Warrior- She-Cat- blue/hazel eyes

**Pinepaw**-Apprentice(Shiverpelt)- Tom- dark brown tabby/green eyes

**Nightfog**-Queen- She-Cat- black/yellow eyes

**Sprucekit**-Kit- She-Cat- black/green eyes

**Silverkit**-Kit- She-Cat- silver tabby/green eyes

**Splashstream**-Elder- She-Cat- blue/yellow eyes

**Bristlefur**-Elder- Tom- orange tabby/hazel eyes

Chapter 11-Last Sunrise

Fruitclaw checked on Logstar. He wasn't looking good. He couldn't speak without coughing. Even catmint, which thank StarClan they had an abundance of, didn't help. Hawkflight was a bit better than the leader, but was getting worse every day.

He was surprised Smallfoot hadn't caught it yet. She came in every day to check on her friends, without any fear of the sickness. He made sure to keep an eye on her. Was she that strong, all because of being born small?

* * *

"Quick! A WindClan patrol just crossed the border!" Shiverpelt burst into the warrior's den. "I need Fogcloud, Lilypond, Smallfoot, and Redear! Everyone else guard the camp!"

Smallfoot was honored to be chosen for a defense patrol. It was probably because she was fast enough to overcome a WindClan warrior.

The cats whose names were called rushed out of the den and ran to the border to assist their patrol. It looked like the WindClan patrol was bigger than usual. Was this a planned attack? Had Swiftstar told them to do this? He couldn't have. Everyone knew Swiftstar was a coward.

Was it the deputy, Coldbreeze? Did she organize an attacking patrol without Swiftstar knowing? It certainly sounded like her. She had way too much ambition for her own good.

The fight had already started, and RiverClan was overwhelmed. She leaped on one of the cats attacking Pinepaw, and clawed the orange tabby's ears. She scratched his back and bit his neck.

The cat rolled over, squishing the air out of her lungs. While she was temporarily incapacitated, the warrior, Amberfur was his name, battered at her. But she wouldn't be defeated. Not this time. She dodged his claws, then pushed him over and clawed his stomach. It had been a risky move, but it worked. He soon fled.

Now it looked as if RiverClan were winning. Smallfoot searched around, and eventually saw Coldbreeze ferociously attacking Fogcloud, who was barely keeping his own.

Smallfoot came to the rescue, biting the WindClan deputy's cold legs.

Coldbreeze hissed and turned around to face Smallfoot, giving Fogcloud the chance he needed. After some more desperate blows, Coldbreeze hissed loudly and turned to flee. "Don't think we won't come back, you stinky kittypets!"

"I hope she never becomes the leader," Fogcloud breathed to Smallfoot. "She's not StarClan material, that's for sure."

"I agree. She's too ambitious. She won't stop until RiverClan is hers, or she's dead. Preferably the 'dead' thing will come first."

* * *

"Is Hawkflight getting any better?" Smallfoot asked, but by seeing Whitefeather's face, she already knew the answer.

"The opposite. I'm sorry, there's really nothing I can do, other than keep giving them catmint."

Smallfoot wandered over to the two lonely-looking cats. They both had their heads down, and Logstar broke into a coughing fit.

"Logstar, we think Coldbreeze is plotting against us."

Logstar sighed, as if he'd expected this. "We need to stop her before she becomes leader. If she becomes leader, there will be little to no chance of RiverClan as we know it surviving."

"That's bleak."

"Tell me about it. Coldbreeze is the kind of cat that only comes around once in a while, and changes everything for the future. Legends will be written about her for many, many moons. And then a new cat will come along, and take the legends from her. That's how it works."

Smallfoot sighed. Everything was going downhill. She turned to Hawkflight. "Look, I-"

"Smallfoot, I'm not going to make it." He said abruptly, coughing.

"Don't think like that! You can't! You have to be optimistic!"

"Smallfoot, listen to me. I love you. I have always loved you. Even with your disabilities, you are by far the most amazing cat I've ever met. But I- I can _feel_ StarClan calling me. I probably won't be alive to see the sunrise tomorrow."

Smallfoot had no response. Grief welled up, but there was no comfort. She placed her head in her paws and prayed to StarClan. "Am I destined for pain? Why do you hate me so much?"

Hawkflight hauled himself to her. "I love you," she whispered. "And I will stay with you to the end." She brought him out into the camp, into the darkness, where there was a clear view to the east.

"What are you doing?" he asked softly.

"Just wait."

Hawkflight stayed up to see his last, most beautiful sunrise before he rose to the stars.

* * *

_**Isn't it so sad? HawkxSmall is(obviously) over! Will PinexSmall be a thing? Will Coldbreeze become WindClan leader and kill everybody? All these questions and more will be answered soon!**_


	12. River

Chapter 12-River

"Pinepaw, I can hear you. You really need to work on stalking techniques." Smallfoot stood by the gorge, looking down and thinking about Hawkflight.

"Darn." Pinepaw came up to her. "It's such a shame. Hawkflight, then Logstar... Good thing it wasn't passed to anyone else."

"You knew, didn't you. That's what that conversation was about, back in the forest, right around here."

"StarClan sent me a message. I was skeptical, but once Hawkflight died I firmly believed in StarClan. They told me he would die, and so would Logstar, and that you would be key in taking down Coldbreeze."

"StarClan. You know, sometimes even I don't believe in them." She looked at the cold, overcast sky like it was grinning evilly at her. "Hawkflight, if you're up there, send me a sign. Anything. Why does StarClan punish me? What did I do? What should I do?"

Pinepaw looked up as well. He had no friends or family in these skies. Then he looked down at his brown paws, sparkling with frost. Life was too hard.

"Pinepaw," Smallfoot wondered, "Where did you come from? Tell me about it."

"I was born in a forest very far away, at the end of leaf-bare. My mother didn't nurse me for very long. I taught myself to hunt, and I almost died of starvation a number of times. I don't think I had any siblings, but I can't be sure.

"Later I found another loner, named River, and he refined my hunting and fighting skills. Good thing he did, too, because we were attacked by a dog, and I would have died if I hadn't had those skills."

"Wait, so what did this River call you, if you didn't have a name?"

"This is really odd, but... He called me Pine."

"What did River look like?"

"Um, I don't think it matters-" She gave him a hard look- "But, I'll try anyway." He concentrated, closing his eyes. "He was a huge blue tabby, old but still skilled. His eyes were blue, and if you looked into them for a while, it seemed like you could see splashing water. His pelt was interesting, like it were covered with tiny stars, or frost or something.

Anyway, he taught me some basics on fighting, and then walked me to the RiverClan border and pointed out a mouse. 'Show me your skills,' was the last thing I heard from him. Oh, and it seemed like he didn't eat, either, unless he ate at night while I was sleeping."

"So, you lied to Logstar about what you were doing. Why didn't you tell him your name was Pine?"

"I didn't tell him that because it seemed like Pine was only what River called me, and no one else. I was really surprised when you called me Pinepaw. And the night after I came, I went back to see if River was still there somewhere, but I couldn't find him. He abandoned me to RiverClan, so I stayed."

"Well, Pinepaw... I'm not sure, but I believe your first mentor was the creator of RiverClan, River. Apparently he came from StarClan just to help you. You must be quite a special cat if a _founder_ came to show you to us. Did he say anything weird, like something that a very wise old cat would say?

"Whenever I messed up a move, he put on a disappointed face and said 'Fate is in your paws, now use them like they were meant to be used!'"

"We have to tell Fruitclaw about this."

"Why would he believe me? I'm not a Clan cat, and the story does seem a bit ridiculous. I'm surprised, and thankful, that you did."

"You're my friend, I have to believe crazy stories like this. But if I find out that you're lying, you might be seeing StarClan sooner than you think," she warned.

* * *

Smallfoot drifted into dreamland, specifically StarClan. Hawkflight was the first cat she saw. "HAWKFLIGHT!" she yowled, running to him. She ignored the beautiful surroundings, and stared at her best friend. "You made it!"

"Of course I did. Now, isn't there someone you wanted to see?"

"I wanted to see you, silly!" Smallfoot smiled.

He kept staring at her until she gave up the act. "Alright, I didn't come here _specifically_ to see you, but I'd hoped that I might. I want to see River."

As if she had summoned him with her words, River materialized in front of her. She was breathless: this cat created her entire Clan.

"Urm, h-hello, River." She gave a bow.

He smiled a very fatherly smile and said, "That's not necessary. Just talk to me like you would your leader."

"Most of the time, I talk to my leader like he's an apprentice."

River let out a small, deep laugh. "I have noticed. So what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Did you mentor my friend Pinepaw?"

"Yes, I did. We received a very important prophecy concerning 'Pine'. We were lucky enough to be shown a picture of this 'Pine', and we found him far away. Shiningleaf deemed him important enough to be brought to RiverClan by yours truly."

"That's pretty important."

"I might say so. Would you like to hear the prophecy? It concerns you, too."

"No, thanks. I'd rather it be a complete mystery instead of having to solve a riddle."

River shrugged, his muscled shoulders rolling smoothly. "Your choice." He began to disappear.

"Wait! River!"

"Yes?"

"Will I ever see you again?"

"Maybe in your dreams, sweet child." He left Smallfoot alone with Hawkflight. "Hawkflight, I just don't know what to do. I don't think I can love anyone as much as I loved you, and as for Coldbreeze-"

"Shhh," Hawkflight comforted. "Just follow your heart, okay? I'll see you again soon." StarClan faded.

"No! Hawkflight! Come back!"

"Hawkflight's dead, Smallfoot. Are you dreaming about him?" Mossclaw asked the recently-asleep warrior.

"I saw him in StarClan, and he talked to me."

"It was just a dream, Smallfoot. He's gone."

"I know." Smallfoot was getting up when she felt something prick her. She groaned. "There must be a thorn in my nest."

She looked down and saw two things: a pine needle, and a flower, symbol of love.


	13. Deception and Treachery

Chapter 13-Deception and Treachery

_What in StarClan do they mean?_ Smallfoot tried to ask herself, but she already knew what they meant. Hawkflight was giving her permission to love Pinepaw. But the ultimate question was, would she ever love Pinepaw?

She had to visit Logstar. She burst into his den, but he wasn't there. _He must still be in the medicine den,_ she thought irritably. But he wasn't there, either. Was he on a patrol? She asked around camp, but no one had seen him.

"Hey Treeheart, have you seen Logstar?" Smallfoot asked him, since he was guarding the entrance. "Yeah, he went out a while ago. He hasn't come back."

Smallfoot nodded and ran out to find her leader. She opened her mouth to find his scent. It didn't take long to find, so soon she was in a secluded, tiny clearing, looking for Logstar.

"Hey Logstar, I know you're in here somewhere! Where are you?"

"Up here," said a voice coming from the tree in front of her. She saw a tail coming out of a hole in the trunk, and scrambled up.

"I just wanted to tell you something."

"Tell away." The sickness seemed to have drained her leader.

"Well, yesterday Pinepaw told me about what he did before he came here, and a dream I had last night confirmed it."

"Continue." Logstar was more interested now.

"Pinepaw was led here by River."

"_The _River? You're not serious?"

"I am. He taught him how to hunt and everything."

"Getting mentored by River! That's one of the greatest honors a RiverClan cat can have! He hasn't boasted about it or anything?"

"Nope, as a matter of fact, he kind of wants me to keep it quiet."

"Remarkable! I really must hear this story."

"Ask him about it. Anyway, you're correct, being mentored by River is a _huge_ honor. And Pinepaw was chosen for that because he's in a prophecy about defeating WindClan."

"Oh dear."

"Tell me about it. Also, apparently I'm in this prophecy as well, but I refused to be told what the prophecy was. They're too complex, layered with double meanings and sadness."

They both stayed silent for a minute, mulling over what had been said. Logstar broke the silence, "I have a feeling that Coldbreeze will be the death of me. She's cunning, strong, and young, and I'm on my last life."

"Wait, Logstar, in the medicine den, you told Hawkflight and I that you were on your seventh life. You can't be on your ninth!"

"I didn't want you to worry. But now, it doesn't really matter. I'm equal with every cat: If I die, I die. No coming back this time." He sucked in a breath and avoided her hurt gaze.

"Why is everyone lying to me?" When he didn't respond, she made her way back to camp.

"Did you find him?" Treeheart asked.

"Yes." She didn't give any details, and she didn't care. Lies and death laced every word, every shadow. And this certainly wouldn't be the end of the deception.

* * *

Smallfoot knew it was against the code, and she knew Logstar would be disappointed, even angry, if he heard about it. More so if she got caught.

This spying mission would take all of her concentration. Was she in the right spot? Could they smell her from here? She had masked herself with WindClan mud so that the RiverClan scent wouldn't be completely obvious. It took a bit of quiet shuffling, but she found a spot that was downwind and had a good view of the leader's den.

Coldbreeze went in and out of the den often, but Swiftstar usually just stayed in there, sleeping, eating, or bathing. Smallfoot was anxiously waiting for the moment. She hoped it wouldn't happen, but every sense inside her told her that it would. But when? Hopefully when Smallfoot was watching. She had given up a night of sleep for this.

Smallfoot would tighten her muscles every time the deputy entered the leader's den, and relaxed when she left. Subconsciously, she knew it wouldn't happen until almost all of the Clan was asleep, especially the elders and warriors loyal to Swiftstar.

When these conditions were set, Coldbreeze entered the den. Would this be it? The warrior guarding the entrance, most definitely loyal to Coldbreeze only, looked into the den, interested. This was definitely it.

Coldbreeze padded in like normal, and struck up a conversation with the leader. He suspected something, as his deputy had clearly woken him up, so he stood, wary. Not wasting time, Coldbreeze leaped on him. Since she was a seasoned warrior, and he a coward barely ever leaving his den, she easily overcame him. There was only a second of hesitation before she slit his throat.

Smallfoot couldn't watch. Of course, she had expected this, but even things you expect can be to terrible to see. Sure, Swiftstar was a poor leader, but that was no way to treat him. Apparently this was his last life, because he didn't get up. She smeared some kind of mud on her claw marks. RiverClan mud.

Coldbreeze waited a bit, then screeched at the top of her lungs. "Swiftstar's murdered! Murdered!"

Every WindClan cat came out, most feigning being alarmed, others with faces of genuine surprise.

Coldbreeze leaped up on a rock to face her Clan. "I was padding into Swiftstar's den, because I had heard a scuffle, and I found him with his throat torn out. RiverClan stench was all over him. Tonight we will sleep, tomorrow we will prepare for full invasion of RiverClan, and the Gathering is tomorrow night, where we will confront Logstar and accuse him. While most of his Clan will be at the Gathering, most of ours will be at the border, ready for my signal. If for some reason we can't prove him wrong, the attack will be called off. If everything goes right, RiverClan's camp will be ransacked. Any questions?"

The elders and senior warriors were, obviously, against it.

"You're going to attack their camp?"

"On a Gathering night?"

"You won't have nine lives yet!"

"Good point, Greypelt. I won't have nine lives, or a leader name, will I? But I will. Tomorrow, Harefoot and I will go to Mothermouth, so I will be prepared for the invasion. Any more questions?"

"Codebreaker!" an elder spat.

"Now, now, Flowerfur, don't accuse me! RiverClan broke it first, they deserve it! Or do they not? Do you think all this will be solved with _words_? Please. You elders and your old ways. Cats use their claws nowadays, dearie. Now, no more questions? Good." Coldbreeze went into the leader's den.

"What a cold-blooded, fox-hearted, murdering traitor!" Smallfoot hissed quietly, turning to go back.

"I know, how could she?" Pinepaw's voice scared Smallfoot out of her wits. After she had calmed down, she said, "You're getting better at sneaking up on me."

"I saw the whole thing. And so did they."

Logstar rose out of the darkness, now seeming much less frail than he had this morning. Along with him were Fruitclaw, Treeheart, Cloudsplash, and Shiverpelt.

"Conveniently, I followed you out, realized what you were doing, and tried to find Logstar. I found him alright, in a meeting with the senior warriors and medicine cat. So I invited them all."

"I would be angry that you trespassed on WindClan's land, but... This was very helpful," Logstar said, apparently not daunted by the fact that he saw a fellow leader die.

They covered up their scent the best they could, with mud and other such materials. Thankfully, it started raining soon after they left.

When they got back to camp, soaked, Logstar called a meeting. Everyone was complaining because of how late it was, but once Logstar got into the subject, they were all quiet. "I believe a battle will be inevitable, in order to beat this menace," he concluded.

RiverClan cheered themselves on and threw insults at Coldbreeze and WindClan.

"What a traitor!"

"Group of mange-pelts, that's what they are."

"Disgusting, she killed her own leader!"

Before everyone was dispersed, Logstar organized patrols. "We will give the excuse that most of our cats are sick, to give WindClan a false sense of security. Smallfoot, Pinepaw, Wavetail, Redear, Treeheart, Shiverpelt, and the medicine cats come with me. Everyone else, be completely prepared for an attack! Lace _everything_ with thorns, even your own pelts if you have to! Build traps!"

Fogcloud smiled evilly. "That's my specialty."

Hearing this, Logstar said, "Fogcloud is in charge of camp defenses!" He smiled, although there was a high chance he would be dead tomorrow.

* * *

_**This is probably my favorite chapter so far! You guys like it? :D**_


	14. Gathering Night

_**Review answering time!**_

The Gone Angel- I kind of made Redear, Whispermist and Rainheart to be a stark contrast to their daughter/ sister. I took your advice into account! Thanks!

Guest- I know, I just couldn't see PinexSmall happening either, and it was driving me crazy, I was trying to figure out why they just couldn't be together. I finally realized that I could never see them as more than friends, like snuggling and stuff, just... no. Hawkflight, I could see with her. Pinepaw was just a no.

**Guest- The next chapter is NOW! :D  
**

**To everyone else, thanks for the compliments!  
**

Chapter 14-Gathering Night

"Pinepaw, from now until always, your warrior name will be Pinespirit," Logstar called out.

"Pinespirit! Pinespirit!"

"Sprucekit and Silverkit, step forward. You are both now six moons, old enough to become apprentices. Your names until the day you become a warrior will be Sprucepaw and Silverpaw. Sprucepaw, your mentor will be Frogleap. Silverpaw, your mentor will be Glintfur.

"Now, Sprucepaw and Silverpaw, since you haven't had any training, you will stay in the nursery during tonight's attack." They cried out, but he silenced them with a tail. "You simply cannot defend yourselves. You would be beaten instantly. I'm sure your mother would agree." Grassfur nodded quickly.

"Plus, with the few battle skills that you do know, you can protect Nightfog if anyone goes in there." He leaped down, done with the ceremonies.

"Fogcloud, remember, you are in charge of camp defenses. Grassfur can help you."

Fogcloud nodded, grinning. This was going to be great. "I need some warriors to get as many thorns as possible," he told Grassfur. She nodded and gathered a patrol.

"Smallfoot, Mossclaw, Moonheart, Pinespirit! I need thorns!" The said cats rushed out. "I know where a big thorn bush is," Moonheart said, and led them there. After five painful trips back and forth, there were enough thorns to stuff a few into the pelts of every cat.

Older warriors were reinforcing the entrance with brambles, while Fogcloud, Frogleap, and Shiverpelt were digging a ditch in front of the entrance to fill with water and cover with leaves, so the WindClanners could feel what it was like to get your paws wet.

There were stacks of rocks in the trees around the camp, so that warriors hidden up there could throw rocks at the invaders. They would never see it coming.

When it was finally time for the gathering, Logstar rounded up the patrol he had decided the day before. "You all have thorns?" They nodded. "Ready?" More nods. "Let's go."

They were all pumped up, full of anticipation, adrenaline, and yes, fear. "Remember, don't be afraid to maim someone. They are all traitors, after all. But we'll try to win this without a fight," Logstar said, mostly to himself.

Everyone was there already when they padded in. They barely had time to talk to anyone before they had to sit and listen.

Owlstar of ThunderClan was first. "We have had good hunting the past moon, despite it being leaf-bare. One of our elders, Leafpelt, died, but Foxwhisker had a litter of three healthy kits: Ashkit, Blackkit, and Finchkit." He stepped back, and Hopestar of ShadowClan stepped forward.

"ShadowClan has had good hunting as well. We don't have much news, but we did successfully fight off a young badger. No cat was severely hurt." She stepped back, and now it was Logstar's turn.

"We also had good hunting. Our young warrior Hawkflight died of greencough." Many cats groaned and said they felt sorry. "Pinepaw became a warrior, Pinespirit, and Sprucekit and Silverkit are apprentices. You may be wondering why we don't have many warriors tonight. Well, our Clan is still struck with greencough, so we left all the sick ones at camp, and this is what we have left." He could see most of the WindClan warriors perked up at this news.

"However, we RiverClan cats will make it through. We aren't as weak as you might think." He sighed and stepped back. Every RiverClan warrior's heart beat in their throats as Coldbreeze stepped up.

Some cats, probably ShadowClan, said, "Where's Swiftstar?"

"Swiftstar is..." Coldbreeze pretended to be heartbroken. "Dead. Murdered." Gasps of shock rang out in the clearing. "By who?" one loud cat asked. "We aren't specifically sure, but there was RiverClan scent all over him."

"Are you accusing my Clan of murder?" Logstar snarled, outraged.

"No, I'm accusing one of your Clan members of murder."

"Well, where is the body?"

"What body?"

"Don't give me that. Swiftstar's body, for StarClan's sake!"

"It's buried. Anyway, it's not like I could bring it, it would stink up the place. Much like you RiverClan cats do."

"When did he die?"

"I think you know that."

"Why would I? No one in my Clan killed him."

"Yes they did!"

"Do you have any proof?"

"The fish scent was all over him! As well as your mud!"

"You know very well, Coldbreeze, that any WindClan cat could simply scrape mud off of our border marking and rub it into Swiftstar's fur. As a matter of fact, I think I saw a scrape mark in the mud not too long ago..."

"It's Cold_star_, and it was probably one of your cats fooling around!" Coldstar began looking scared and uncomfortable.

Logstar slowly shook his head. "Two of my cats saw you take it. Remember that skirmish, the one _you_ started and lost? Well, Pinespirit and Fogcloud said they saw you do something suspicious. You took mud from our boundary and walked back with it. Explain this action, Cold_star._ Also explain why you said 'Don't think we won't come back'."

Coldstar couldn't speak. All evidence was against her. "But these cats... They probably lied to you."

"I trust my cats, Coldstar, and they trust me. It's better than you can say for yourself."

"Fine, Logstar! You win this one! But let me tell you this: The entirety of WindClan prefers me to Swiftstar. It's not my fault he was a coward. He deserved it."

Most of the WindClan cats roared, "Coldstar!"

Owlstar spoke up. "Well-"

"Shut up, Owlstar, this isn't your fight! This is just between me and Logstar."

But Smallfoot was confused. If Coldstar only had WindClan warriors, they could easily be overwhelmed by the other cats in the clearing. She would literally be fighting a losing battle. Why was she still here? Why hadn't she ran away?

Coldstar nodded to the WindClan cats, and they fled the clearing, heading toward the RiverClan camp. Logstar was about to take his cats and leave, but ShadowClan was in their way. "Let us through!" Logstar pleaded.

"I'm sorry, Logstar. I can't do that." Oh, this was why she didn't have to run away. She had ShadowClan on her side.

Hopestar gave her Clan a signal, but before they attacked, ThunderClan got in the way. "And I can't let_ you _do _that._" Owlstar stood up for the RiverClanners.

As the two Clans collided, Owlstar yowled, "Logstar, go!"

Logstar had no hesitation. It was terrible, though, seeing so much bloodshed, on a Gathering night, all because of one ambitious cat.


	15. Battle

Chapter 15-Battle

Fogcloud stood silently at the entrance, mud in his paw, waiting for the WindClan traitors. They deserved this mud. They really did.

A leaf crackled, a twig snapped. He could hear a cat hissing at another, and knew they were close. _Splash!_ Hissed swears. "Fox-dung!"

"Those RiverClan muck, living in... their own muck."

"You're insults are terrible."

"_Shhhhh!_"

Fogcloud grinned. They were in for more than that. Suddenly, there was a sound of rocks falling. More curses spouted from the WindClan mouths. "Mouse-brained squirrels!" A scream, many yowls. But still the cats crept on, although by now they were suspicious.

Fogcloud saw a white cat squeeze through the entrance, hissing at the thorns, and immediately she was battered my mud. Mousetooth leaped on her, more cats came in, and all became utter chaos made of screams, mud, blood, and claws.

* * *

Smallfoot chased the fox-hearted WindClanners. She knew she wouldn't catch up to them until they had reached camp, so she didn't bother trying.

It was a madhouse by the time she got there. The cats were almost all right inside the entrance, so she squeezed through the dirt-path. She looked around, and was drawn to a small calico going into the nursery. There probably weren't any RiverClan warriors in there.

Smallfoot ran harder than she had ever run before, and only for about two fox-lengths, but it was worth it. One second lost was one second advantage for her opponent.

Driven by momentum, she plowed into the calico. She hissed, surprised and angry. "You're all crazy, you murderers!"

"You actually believe that?" Smallfoot stopped fighting for a second.

Sneering, the calico took advantage of that. Before she knew it, Smallfoot felt cold claws and warm blood on her neck. _Don't let me die,_ she pleaded, though she knew she wasn't going to unless this cat clawed again. Fearing her life, Smallfoot clawed her attacker, but it did nothing. She simply smiled, and raised her paw to strike...

_Wham!_ A cat shot out of nowhere, plowing the calico into the mud and saving Smallfoot's life. As his green eyes turned toward her, it was obvious that he was Pinespirit.

He was amazing. Smallfoot smiled, fairly glad that she wasn't dead. It was a satisfying feeling, being alive.

Together, Smallfoot and Pinespirit easily took down the cat, forcing her to run away. "Go to the medicine den right now," he ordered. "That wound is serious. You need Fruitclaw to see to that."

"It's not that bad, chill out. Here, I'll stem the bleeding with a leaf." Smallfoot pressed a nearby leaf to her throat to stem the flow of blood.

Pinespirit wasn't happy, but at least he knew when to stop arguing.

"Hey, thanks for saving me, there. I thought I was gone."

"No problem."

They looked around for more WindClan cats, but they were thinning out. Then she noticed Coldstar in the entrance to the leader's den, fighting Logstar.

She could tell Logstar's blows were getting weaker, and Coldstar's stronger. In one swift move, Coldstar pinned Logstar against the wall and repeatedly raked her claws down his belly.

"No!" Smallfoot screamed, practically flying towards Coldstar. Hate was the only emotion that existed now. Not sorrow, not fear, hate and revenge.

"Best served Cold, eh, RiverClan?" she sneered.

Little did Coldstar know, headed directly towards her was a ball of claws, fur, and hate. She barely had time to react.

Later on, Smallfoot swore she never remembered anything from the moment she saw Logstar die to the moment she woke up in the medicine den, neck and legs aching.

But here's what happened.

* * *

Smallfoot clawed Coldstar in every spot she could reach, not caring about strategy or sneaking around. Pinespirit would have joined in, but what with Smallfoot being in such a state, he wasn't so sure if he would be helping or hurting. He would join in when the real problems started, like her almost getting killed again.

Nearly the entire Clan witnessed the spectacle of Smallfoot's savagery. So much rage built up in one small cat. You could see respect glinting in the eyes of every cat, even the seasoned warriors.

Coldstar couldn't even react. she just received blow after blow, shocked by such a display. _She would have made a great WindClan cat, _was one of her last thoughts.

Finished, Smallfoot whispered "Revenge, best served to Cold," before flopping on her side and passing out.

Coldstar's body was a mass of cuts, with not much remaining fur or skin. "She must not have been given nine lives," Pinespirit commented.

The rest of the Clan was simply awestruck, some with smiles, some with faces of supreme shock, some with sorrow(for Logstar, of course).

Treeheart and Cloudsplash carried their former leader to the middle of the camp. Pinespirit looked over at Grassfur, her face all shock. Eventually she picked herself up and went to the leader's den, shock still the main emotion. Pinespirit didn't blame her.

Pinespirit went over to his former leader. "I didn't know you for long," he whispered, "But you welcomed me in, and that's all that counts."

Next, he visited Smallfoot. "I loved you," he spoke to the near-motionless form. "But I know you don't feel like that." He got up and padded back to the warriors' den.

* * *

Whitefeather padded in, and Smallfoot sat up expectantly. It had been a while since the battle, and it was disgustingly boring in the medicine den. "You're free to go," she said. "But keep an eye on your neck. Figuratively," she added, as Smallfoot tried to look at her neck.

Smiling, Smallfoot felt like a kit again. Carefree and bored. She went back to her nest in the warriors' den and smelled it, glad to be back. But something was missing.

She searched around until she found it. It was a crushed flower, but instead of a pine needle with it, there was a beautiful brown feather. As she looked up, her yellow eyes met the green ones of Pinespirit, and he nodded slowly. "Hawkflight it was, Hawkflight it is."

She couldn't help but smile, a sad, sad smile.

* * *

_**Alright, guys, I think this is the end. I might have an epilogue(probably), or even a sequel of some kind(probably not). Review!**_


	16. Epilogue

Epilogue

_Every Clan had its casualties that dreadful Gathering night, with WindClan and RiverClan having the most, of course. Shiverpelt, Logstar, Fruitclaw, and Splashstream were all murdered in different ways. Four WindClan cats, including Coldstar and Amberfur, were killed. A sane, kind, and strong cat, Birchclaw, took over to lead, as Grassstar was the next RiverClan leader. ThunderClan and ShadowClan each had one casualty from battle wounds, not really murder. Later, the Clans forgave each other, as they knew that Coldstar was just one bad apple._

_After that, Smallfoot was moved to the nursery, as she was expecting kits. Sprucepaw became medicine apprentice, Treeheart became deputy. Smallfoot is the third-smallest cat in the clan now, being surpassed only by Sprucepaw and Silverpaw, but not for long._

"Whitefeather! Nightfog called from the nursery. "Smallfoot is having her kits!"

Whitefeather rushed in, and wasn't surprised to find the young warrior gasping in pain. She couldn't help but remember the last time this had been Smallfoot's home, how she had studied the medicinal herbs while her brother and sister played...

But now wasn't the time to be nostalgic. It was time to work. She was a little scared, because this would be her first kitting without Fruitclaw to help.

Smallfoot gasped in pain. "Sprucepaw, get some water for Smallfoot." The little medicine apprentice rushed out.

Whitefeather gave the queen a stick to bite down on. "Don't worry, you'll be fine."

"I'm not worried," she groaned through the stick. It splintered.  
After an uncomfortable minute, a small blue she-kit came into the world. About a minute later, her two near-identical brown tabby brothers came, too.

Something drifted into the room, a shape. The shape of a cat. Smallfoot looked up. "Hawkflight!" she whispered to the StarClan cat. He smiled and looked at his kits. "It will be hard for them to grow up without a father."

"Don't say that. Won't you visit them in dreams?"

"Maybe when their older, after they've looked death in the face, and know what it is."

"That probably won't be for a while. Are you sure?"

The starry cat nodded slowly. "It'll be for the best. Anyway, what will the names be?"

"Fishkit," Smallfoot pointed to the blue one, "Logkit, and Hawkkit," she pointed to the brown tabbies.

Hawkflight nodded in agreement, happy that his sons had been named after him and Logstar. Done with his earthly business, Hawkflight drifted back to the stars, leaving Smallfoot much sadder than before.

Pinespirit padded into the nursery just as Hawkflight left. He looked really awkward. "Has Hawkflight been by yet?"

"You just missed him."

Pinespirit nodded, then crept over to the kits. "Names?"

"Fishkit, Hawkkit, and Logkit."

"Good. They'll be the strongest warriors in the clan someday, like you."

"Thanks, Pinespirit, but I'm definitely not the strongest."

"You didn't see yourself take down Coldstar single-pawed without a scratch."

"Stop it!" she yowled, but smiled anyway. She couldn't help it. "Stop bringing that up! I probably wasn't nearly as good as you make me out to be, anyway."

"You're too humble. I have a firm belief that no one else in the clan could have done that, except you. You were one of Logstar's closest friends, even though you're so young."

Smallfoot shook her head, still smiling. "Hey, maybe you'll get to mentor one of my kits," she changed the subject.

"Sure." Pinespirit smiled sadly and padded back out.

Smallfoot sighed and looked at her kits. The next generation of troublemakers had been born...

* * *

_**Guys, you might be in luck! I just got an idea for a 2nd generation story. Smallfoot, regrettably, probably won't be playing a big part, just being a mother. Fishkit, Logkit, and Hawkkit get the spotlight! **_

_**But don't get your hopes too high up, it might not happen. Just keep your eyes on the Warriors fanfics! :D  
**_


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